Egyptian President Abdul Fattah el-Sisi said Wednesday that the COVID-19 crisis has been a significant opportunity “to accelerate digitalization, and to improve our policies to become socially, economically, and environmentally more sustainable.”
The president’s remarks were made in a televised speech he delivered on the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
"The year 2020 was full of challenges and negative repercussions posed by the coronavirus pandemic, to the extent that the post-COVID-19 world will be different than the one before," Sisi explained.
However, the crisis "has availed important opportunities, notably to accelerate digitalization, and to improve our policies to become socially, economically, and environmentally more sustainable, which would contribute to achieving a comprehensive recovery as soon as possible," he stressed.
Sisi said the crisis "highlights the role of the OECD, with its 60 years of experience in multilateral cooperation, in formulating policies that promote transparency and governance, accommodating the evolving trends and the needs of the global economy.”
“It also highlights the OECD’s positive contribution to the formulation of the required global path and the sought-after solidarity to tackle this unprecedented crisis in the efforts to alleviate the burden shouldered by all countries regardless of their degree of development, in addition to guiding such joint efforts to a win-win situation," he added.
The president has assured that despite the severity of the economic repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, the Egyptian economy has demonstrated a resilience that helped sustain its positive growth rates.
"This was possible in light of the structural economic reform program that Egypt adopted over the last few years, achieving significant successes in a short period,” he said.
Sisi highlighted the positive impact of the program on development efforts and enhancing the government’s ability to effectively intervene when needed by introducing stimulus packages for key economic sectors, as well as providing support for the most vulnerable segments of the society.
The president expressed Egypt's deep appreciation for the prominent role the OECD plays at the bilateral level with Egypt.
He added that the organization "has significantly contributed to the development of standards and the formulation of economic and development policies capable of achieving the slogan agreed upon by its member states: Better Policies for Better Life."
